Sometime in the next month we'll know the outcome of the bid for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope, a next-generation radio telescope, designed to answer fundamental questions about the universe.

The decision is critical for the future of our scientific discipline, as the winning site will not only be the home of the SKA but also one of the last safe havens for radio astronomy on this increasingly cluttered planet.

The Australasian approach would see telescopes concentrated at the Murchison Radio Astronomy Observatory in Western Australia, and stretching across the Australian continent and into New Zealand.

The majority of the telescopes making up the SKA will be concentrated in an area tens of kilometres across. Some telescopes will be placed at even greater distances, leading to an array stretching at least 3000 kilometres from end-to-end.

This distance provides the magnification required to study galaxies billions of light years away.

What will it do?

Perhaps the biggest puzzle the SKA aims to solve is the physical makeup of the universe. In the 1930s astronomers studying the spiraling motions of distant galaxies made a startling discovery. The majority of matter that makes up galaxies is missing. The nature of this 'dark matter' remains completely unknown.

One theory suggests that dark matter is composed of exotic particles, as yet undiscovered. Giant 'atom-smashers' such as the Large Hadron Collider are searching for these exotic particles, with no success to date.

Using the awesome power of the SKA telescope, we seek to understand the nature of dark matter in two ways. First, by observing the very faint radio signals from galaxies in the distant universe. Second, by tracking the precise motions of stars orbiting the super-massive black hole at the centre of our galaxy.

An alternative to the dark matter theory is simply that our equations of gravity are wrong, or even that we need to revise our paradigm for the universe.

One interesting prediction of Einstein's theory of gravity is that our universe is awash with ripples in the fabric of space and time, emitted when black holes orbit one another in a sort of elephantine celestial waltz.

Using the SKA, we hope to measure these so-called 'gravitational waves' for the first time, by detecting the motions of stars bobbing up and down like little boats on a cosmic swell. These observations are almost impossible with current telescopes, due to the fleeting nature of the weak radio signals emitted by these stars.

Beyond astronomy

But SKA goes beyond pushing the boundaries of our scientific understanding — it will also produce significant technological offshoots and societal benefits.

In recent times, astronomy research has led to the development of commercial products such as digital cameras, wireless internet and medical imaging techniques that enable the detection and treatment of cancerous tumours.

The SKA will drive a new generation of technologies. With thousands of individual antennas collecting information from the sky, the telescope will produce an unimaginable torrent of data — estimated at 10 to 100 times greater than the current global internet data traffic.

The 'brain' of the SKA — a massive supercomputer that will combine the data from each individual telescope to create an image — will need the processing power of 1 billion desktop computers. The technological demand created by the project is driving the development of high-tech solutions to these challenges, not to mention the many other devices such as radio receivers, amplifiers and the associated electronic systems.

Why Australia?

The sheer size of Australia, our existing fast broadband network links and our proximity and connectivity to New Zealand provide significant benefits to the project.

The minimum science requirement for a 3000-kilometre baseline can be met within a single, politically stable nation, which ensures great simplicity and low risk to the project.

The east-west direction provides a boost to the imaging ability of the telescope, due to the rotation of the earth in this direction. The addition of telescopes in New Zealand will provide even greater magnification, further improving the scientific capabilities of the instrument.

And the burden of radio noise in almost eradicated in the Murchison region, which has a population density described by Australia's SKA project director Brian Boyle as "two nano-people per square metre".

As well as the protection offered by its tiny population, the area is legally protected to control future radio interference. This ensures that the Murchison Radio Astronomy Observatory will remain an ideal site for radio astronomy throughout the 50-year lifetime of the SKA.

I sincerely hope that the decision is based upon the data carefully acquired from each candidate site and on the ability of the project to function in a safe and secure environment. These attributes will allow us to attract the very best science and engineering talent from around the world and train up a new generation of homegrown scientists and engineers right here in Australia.

Selecting the best site based upon science is the only sensible approach. If this is done, the SKA telescope will leave a lasting legacy for new generations of scientists to tackle the big questions about life, the universe and everything.

About the authorDr Lisa Harvey-Smith is CSIRO's SKA project scientist. Her research interests include the origin and evolution of cosmic magnetism, supernova remnants, the interstellar medium, massive star formation and astrophysical masers.

DavidSG :

Emps :

15 Feb 2012 12:34:31pm

Not to mention,and i note never mentioned in any Australian articles on the subject that the whole project from design to completion with all the technicalities involved will be co-ordinated and controlled by the SPO at the university of Manchesters Lovell telescope HQ at jodrell bank, Cheshier,UK.

Lisa Harvey-Smith :

petarob :

15 Feb 2012 7:25:01pm

Not to mention that Australia was a pioneer in radio astronomy. Isn't it a pity that shortly most of our brightest and best will have to study agriculture to make up for the appalling dearth of graduates (and courses) in this other world leading area.

OzphilePom :

Lisa Harvey-Smith :

17 Feb 2012 2:12:22pm

Hi OzphilePom,

Thanks for your question. The answer is that the final design of the SKA will be determined in the detailed design phase of the project, which is just starting this year. So we can't say yet, but it is certainly a possibility and an advantage to connect the SKA to other existing telescopes, be that in the host country(ies) or further afield.

StBob :

16 Feb 2012 12:14:59pm

The "safe and secure environment" is code for "we're not those dangerous Africans with their coups and rebels and mad dictators". If this is the best we can do to justify the SKA then we don't deserve it. And surely Africa can benefit enormously from the home trained technicians and scientists who would work on it if based there. Australia is a rich country with an amazing research heritage and can afford some largesse is letting this project go to Africa instead.